Curry remains out but Warriors win

Klay Thompson #11 of the Golden State Warriors goes to the basket against the Houston Rockets on December 31, 2015 at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas.

Golden State Warriors’ Klay Thompson, front right, goes up to shoot as Houston Rockets’ Patrick Beverley (2) defends during the first half of an NBA basketball game Thursday in Houston. It was just the second loss this season for the Warriors.

As Curry, the NBA’s leading scorer and reigning MVP, sat with a lower left leg injury, the Mavericks took advantage with JJ Barea scoring 23 points.

LaMarcus Aldridge had 21 points and 12 rebounds and Kawhi Leonard added 19 points as the Spurs won a 19th straight home game. The Warriors are favorites to win tonight, even though they could be without Curry, so this could be a great opportunity for punters to place a bet with the underdog and see if it works out.

Mavs forward Dirk Nowitzki had 18 points and eight rebounds, center ZaZa Pachulia posted his 17th double-double of the season with 14 points and 15 rebounds, and guards Wesley Matthews and Devin Harris each had 13 points and combined to go 4-of-5 from beyond the arc.

The Warriors looked out of sorts nearly from the beginning with their sharpshooting star watching from the bench in jeans and a black sport coat. He then scored 25 in 27 minutes in a 112-92 rout at Houston on October 30 for Golden State’s ninth win in the past 10 matchups, including the postseason.

Golden State turned a 10-0 burst late in the third quarter, a spurt that featured 3s from Thompson and Iguodala, into a working margin entering the fourth. George Hill led the Pacers with 20 points, and George added 19 points. While they didn’t completely stop the Warriors from getting open shots (their defense isn’t that good), it was a lot easier not having to have a player or two worry about where Curry is going to pop up from at any given time, not to mention the 30.5 points and 6.4 assists per game missing from the stat sheet, which isn’t easy to fill.

Will Barton, traded by Portland to Denver last season, led the Nuggets with 31 points.

Curry is “one of those rare players in this league that affects the entire game just by being on the court”, Walton said after Wednesday’s loss. As coaches, obviously, we put our input in, making sure he’s healthy before we clear him to play. “That’s probably going to be a game-time decision or at least determined on how he’s feeling tomorrow”. Rodney Hood finished with 18 points, 7 rebounds and 6 assists.

For most of the night, Harden and Thompson exchanged shot after shot, providing fans with a classic duel between two of the best shooting guards in the game today. F Harrison Barnes (L ankle sprain), G Leandro Barbosa (L shoulder sprain) and F Kevon Looney (R hip surgery rehab) are not with the team.

Green just laughed and said Curry didn’t have anything to worry about.

Again the Rockets are playing at the level of their opponents. It was nearly 15. He made a trip to Los Angeles in November.

A lighthearted Walton said he hadn’t thought about whether Thursday’s game was his last in charge.

Bryant played 33 minutes and recorded his first double-double of the season.